How are you doing on this December evening? Are you still hanging in there? I know it’s been tough, and isolating, and scary, and at times a little lonely. I know, because I feel it too. COVID has changed us.
This isn’t how any of us thought we would be spending the holiday season of 2020. While some of us are still able to celebrate, there are many who are not. Too many people have lost a loved one, a job, their business, and even their home. The weight of their sorrow and loss is unimaginable. How does one move forward through that kind of life changing experience? I hope it’s with the help of family, friends, neighbors, and even complete strangers.
This is the time to reach-out and check-in with a neighbor or isolated family member. Do they need anything from the grocery store? Do they have a second heat source in case of a power outage? Do they need prescriptions picked up or a ride to a doctor’s appointment? Maybe they just need a friendly voice on the other end of the telephone.
This morning I got a call from my mother. She needed help on her computer to finish an online order. I could tell she was frustrated and her voice started to break. I knew she was less than five minutes from a total meltdown. I told her, “let me brush my teeth and I’ll pop over. We can get it done real quick”. I still hadn’t showered or even changed out of my pajamas (this truly is a daily habit so not really all that note-worthy) when I headed over with mask in hand. Well, real quick turned into about three hours and a trip to Walgreens to pick up the photos I helped her upload for printing.
I lost three hours of time where I could have ticked items off my to-do list. I drove around town with my pajamas on and my hair a mess. I spent my energy doing something that was not on my agenda.
So what’s my point?
It’s that time with our loved ones should never be taken for granted. That I will never regret spending those three hours with my mother who is 86 years old. I know that my dear friend would give anything to have three hours with her husband who passed away this year. That someone who lost their mother this year would drop everything to see her again. That anyone who has lost a loved one would cherish one last time with them.
COVID has not been kind to any of us. It has taken a lot from us this year. But it has also taught us how we need to rely on one another to do what’s right.
